Chapter 267: Chapter 164: A Precipitous Lead: Daoist Qian Hong’s Bewilderment

This situation was highly unusual.

Before they arrived, everyone had expected to see the brutal scene of Demon Cultivators capturing Cultivators to refine their Essence Blood.

Such things had always happened when Demon Cultivators caused trouble in the past.

But they hadn’t expected this time to be different. It seemed the Demon Cultivators had simply fled after pillaging?

Logically speaking, Essence Blood was a crucial cultivation resource for Demon Cultivators. So how could this be?

Yao Dehai’s brow furrowed. He couldn’t figure out what new trick this was.

Beside him, Yang Huai’an was also completely baffled. "What on earth is the Divine Fire Sect plotting now?"

Qiu Qichen, who had been temporarily assigned to the group, was also puzzled. "Yao, should we continue deeper, or should we check another location?"

According to the original plan, they were only here to investigate the situation.

Now that they hadn’t found anyone, whether or not to press on was a major question.

Yao Dehai, however, didn’t hesitate for long. "We continue. Qingyang Mountain is a hundred li ahead. We’ll at least go to Qingyang and take a look."

There had been no word from Xiao Chen for a long time; he was likely still at the Qingyang Spirit Ore mine.

Furthermore, Du Mingjie had gone and not returned, so he might be trapped inside.

If they were quick, they might still be able to save them.

.

「Wangyan Mountain.」

Wang Tianhu, who was on duty, stood atop a side peak, surveying the surroundings. He couldn’t see a single Demon Cultivator.

Ever since a large number of Demon Cultivators had crossed Luoyan Mountain to invade, Demon Cultivators had appeared daily around the outskirts of Wangyan Mountain, the second line of defense.

Especially in the last two days, Demon Cultivators had been harassing them and challenging them to battle from early in the morning.

Yet today, it was almost Noon, and not a single person had appeared.

This was abnormal. Extremely abnormal.

His subordinate Qi Refining Cultivators squinted in the warm sun, enjoying this rare moment of peace.

But Wang Tianhu, far from relaxing, grew exceptionally vigilant.

Some drastic change must have occurred outside, but he knew nothing about it and had received no advance notice from the sect.

On the battlefield, this kind of unexpected situation was rarely a good thing.

Wang Tianhu could only pray that this drastic change wouldn’t affect him.

Meanwhile, in the center of Wangyan Mountain, Gu Qiu Ling was also deeply puzzled.

She pulled her junior sister, Pan Qiaochun, aside to discuss it. "Junior Sister, there must be something wrong with the Demon Cultivators’ sudden retreat."

"Come with me and we’ll scout things out."

Pan Qiaochun quickly shook her head. She had no desire to go out and take risks. "Senior Sister, the situation is unclear. Our most important task is to protect the Grand Array’s operation."

"If we go out and run into the Four Great Wanderers, who will maintain the Array?"

Gu Qiu Ling was a bit discouraged to hear this. Due to a previous rotation, the two late-stage Foundation Establishment Cultivators had gone home to rest and hadn’t managed to return in time.

Yang Huai’an, who usually came here to rest, also happened to be absent.

Therefore, she was short-staffed. If she went out and encountered the Four Great Wanderers, she truly couldn’t guarantee she’d make it back in one piece.

"If only we had two more late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators here."

Gu Qiu Ling mulled it over. "If I had known, I would have chosen two more people to come here back when we were selecting."

She thought about it for a long time before finally giving up on the idea of scouting outside.

Yao Dehai, however, did not give up. He led his team and advanced rapidly, reaching the outskirts of the Qingyang Spirit Ore mine.

They still didn’t see a single Demon Cultivator along the way, right up until they arrived at the entrance to the Spirit Ore mine.

Yang Huai’an, flying on his sword at the very front, glanced down, then immediately shot upward and executed a sharp loop in the air.

Only after gripping a Magical Artifact tightly in each hand did he look down again.

His sudden move startled the others, but they all quickly understood why.

Anyone would be shocked to unexpectedly see several hundred Demon Cultivators piled up together.

Yao Dehai, for his part, was first shocked, then overjoyed.

He saw the Spirit Ore mine’s disciples hiding in the nearby grass, still wearing the robes of the Lingyuan Sect.

This meant the Qingyang Spirit Ore mine was still under their control, and Xiao Chen and the others must be inside, holding out for reinforcements.

Soon, the trio holding out inside the Spirit Ore mine also spotted them.

Both sides were thrilled, especially Chang Shunping. He felt as if he had narrowly escaped death and was finally seeing reinforcements from the sect.

Du Mingjie also felt the joy of surviving a disaster. "Yao, do you know which senior was it who took action and dealt with these Demon Cultivators?"

However, his question stunned Yao Dehai.

’What does he mean by that?’

He asked in return, "Weren’t these Demon Cultivators killed by all of you working together?"

Du Mingjie was dumbfounded. "Killed by us?"

He didn’t have that kind of ability. They hadn’t fought at all in the last two days.

"Such precise Sword Qi!"

Yang Huai’an had also noticed the anomaly by now and couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.

Soon, everyone saw them—the tiny, inconspicuous wounds.

Then Yao Dehai and the others were also plunged into confusion. Who on earth could have done this?

"Wait a minute, where did Xiao go?"

Qiu Qichen asked. He had been looking for a while, but he had only seen the trio, not Xiao Chen.

Du Mingjie quickly stepped forward to explain.

When they learned that Xiao Chen had actually gone to find the Four Great Wanderers on his own, everyone was quite surprised.

Yao Dehai immediately grew anxious. "Heavens, why didn’t you stop him?"

"Putting the Soul-breaking Needle aside, the Four Great Wanderers have run rampant for so many years. Is any one of them easy to deal with?"

"Even the weakest, the Northern Wanderer, has the Frost Water Divine General, which is almost equivalent to a late-stage Foundation Establishment Body Refining Cultivator. Once you face him, it’s like fighting two against one."

Chang Shunping hurriedly explained, "Xiao insisted on going. We couldn’t have stopped him."

"Besides, Xiao has a special Gold Escape technique. Even if he can’t win, he should have no problem escaping with his life."